The cold water pipe for an Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plant is massive and is subject to huge stresses at the joint between the cold water pipe and the OTEC platform. These stresses result from a combination of severe weather, wave action, and the length, diameter, and mass of the cold water pipe. For example, in a 100 MW OTEC plant, the cold water pipe would typically contain 100 million kilograms of water, and the actual mass of the cold water pipe itself would be on the order of 10 million to 50 million kilograms.